Saturday, June 30, 2018

Liar, Liar by Lisa Jackson *NetGalley Review

Mom, aka Didi Storm, was a professional impersonator. Her number one desire in life was to be rich and famous... see her name lit up in the Las Vegas lights. She seemed to always be one step from famous...never able to catch "the break" that would make all of her dreams come true. Then came the night in the desert that would change all their lives, forever. Remmi, Didi's teenage daughter, planned to sneak out and meet Noah, the boy who had stolen her heart. She never anticipated being forced to hide in Mom's car to avoid being caught. Mom, the twins, and the hidden Remmi rendezvous with a mysterious man out in the middle of the Mojave desert. Unbeknownst to Remmi, Noah was hiding in the desert too...and one more person was there that night - a sniper. Remmi confronts her Mother about what was going on in the desert. Didi refuses to tell Remmi anything. Then Didi and the remaining twin disappear in the Caddie, never to be seen or heard from again.

Fast-forward twenty years, a provocative, tell-all book about Didi Storm has just been released, dragging up old memories and unanswered questions. Remmi finds herself once again at the wrong place at the wrong time. As Remmi looks on, a woman dressed as Marilyn Monroe teeters on the ledge of a San Francisco high rise. Suddenly she plunges some 19 stories to her death. Is this woman Didi Storm? Could her story really end like that?

Seemingly out of nowhere Noah Scott returns. A private investigator, he has a few questions of his own. Together Remmi and Noah start investigating what happened to her Mom, the twins, and the identity of the shooter in the desert? The death of the stranger dressed to look like Didi, coincides quite conveniently with the publication of the book. But there's yet another question looming - who has them in their sights now?

This is a plot-driven story, with numerous characters, and multiple threads. With all the various questions and leads that must be tied up, there's not much time to get to know the characters. So they are thin and loosely drawn. The majority of the story is told through the eyes of Remmi. A sympathetic character, reader's will find themselves simultaneously cheering for and screaming at.

Every aspect of her life has been haunted by the disappearance of her Mom and siblings. Answering those questions alone would have been a book. Then you have a list of other sub-plot threads. There's Noah's part, the present day Didi, the author of the book, and the identity of the person following Noah and Remmi.

Jackson manages the barely-there characters well, however, the convoluted circumstances may have some readers checking out before the tidy, yet unexpected ending. There are simply too many "yeah - okay" moments for me to take things very seriously. Liar, Liar is a good read. But Lisa Jackson's strong female characters and writing style, have brought book lovers of different genres together between "her covers" for so long we expect an amazing literary experience. Her rich blend of romance and mystery has set the bar high, and Liar, Liar just missed the mark.

Happy Reading,RJ

Synopsis:

In death, Didi Storm is finally getting the kind of publicity that eluded her in life. Twenty years ago, the ex-beauty queen worked the Vegas strip as a celebrity impersonator, too busy trying to make it big to spare much time for her daughter, Remmi. Shortly before she leaped from a San Francisco building, Didi’s profile was rising again, thanks to a tell-all book. To Detective Dani Settler, it looks like a straightforward suicide, or perhaps a promotional stunt gone wrong. But Remmi knows the truth isn’t so simple. Because though the broken body on the sidewalk is dressed in Didi’s clothes and wig, it isn’t Didi.

Remmi was fifteen when she last saw her mother. Their parting came in the aftermath of a terrible night in the Mojave desert when Remmi—who’d secretly stowed away in Didi’s car en route to meet her crush, Noah Scott—instead became witness to a mysterious rendezvous. Didi handed over one of her newborn twins to a man Remmi didn’t recognize. Subsequently, Didi disappeared, as did Remmi’s other half-sibling. Remmi has pleaded with the authorities to find them, but there have been no clues. Yet she’s always had the sense that someone is watching her . . .

If the victim isn’t Didi, who is it—and what’s the connection? Remmi is shocked when Noah resurfaces. He was also in the desert that night, and now runs his own PI firm. He too believes it’s time to find out what really happened. As they and Detective Settler dig deeper, the truth about Remmi’s missing family begins to emerge . . . a story of ruthless ambition and twisted lies that someone will kill again and again to keep hidden . . .

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About Me

Reviewer since 2007 I review a vast array of book — Audio & hard copy. Sharing my love of books with others is wonderful. Over the last twelve years, I've built a reputation for reliable, informative, entertaining reviews. My website is the virtual version of sitting around with friends talking about our latest read. I invite you to visit my site and hang out awhile. RJ's Views

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I've been married for 27 years. I have one daughter & two granddaughters who are the light of my life. I live in TN. I love chocolate, coffee, & ice wine.